Sunyata (poem)

Indescribable,
Emptiness is
beyond thought and speech,
for mere words cannot describe
ultimate reality.

Everything one encounters
in life is empty
of absolute identity,
of permanence,
and of an in-dwelling 'self'.

For impermanence
is the constant of life;
indeed, it is Truth
of suffering, absolute.
From it comes Buddha-Nature.

Buddha-Nature is
consciousness reborn again.
For all life is impermanent,
and subject to change.
Indeed, this leads to Emptiness.

In emptiness comes
form derived of the Unborn.
In the Unborn comes
emptiness derived of form.
Thus they are of the Unborn.

Yet the Unborn cannot be
described, which brings us
to Emptiness, which cannot
be described in words,
but only experienced.

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Original post: November 18, 2007 04:25 AM

The Basic Goodness of the Unborn (poem)

My heart once aflame with evil passions
is cooled by the calmness of my mind —
all that is left is refined as compassion
by the single-minded focus on No-thought.
Though red embers still glow, its heat
has melted all evil away, leaving behind
the basic goodness of the Unborn.

Becoming Unborn

When we are reborn in the Six Realms of Desire, samsara is not nirvana.

When we are attached to nirvana, nirvana is samsara for it leads to rebirth in samsara.

Samsara consists of the Six Realms of Desire —

• the Hells,
• the Realm of Hungry Ghosts,
• the Realm of Animals,
• the Realm of Humans,
• the Realm of Daemons, and
• the Realm of the Gods

.

When one is attached to rebirth in the human realm, that is not Buddhism but Sanatanadharma and results in rebirth. This attachment consists of a strong belief in transmigration and the permanent soul that is reincarnated solely as a human. It also violates the law of karma, which allows for rebirth in the Six Realms.

In Buddhism, non-attachment is an ideal which may be achieve by purifying the mind. The difficult route is to practice No-thought i.e. let no thought attract you to follow it to its end, but first let each thought go and return to the breath. With practice, it becomes as easy as breathing. This is the essence of Zen.

As for the easy route, Buddha Recitation leads to non-attachment as the Name-that-calls purifies the mind with earnest repetition, burning evil karma as you remember the Buddha. This is why it is called Buddha Remembrance. This is the essence of Pure Land Buddhism.

By remembering the Buddha, the mind is purified so that non-attachment to Nirvana is easily assured!

For non-attachment to Nirvana is essential to becoming Unborn.

Returning Unborn (poem)

Meditation is like
preparing for a bath
and washing yourself clean,
except that, rather than
washing your body,
you purify your mind.
Buddha Recitation is
like sending the pure mind
to the Pure Land,
and returning Unborn,
bright and clean,
ready to be of service
and helpful for the sake
of all sentient beings.

True Heart, True Mind (poem)

the true heart can taste
the difference between love and hate,
yet the boundless compassion
of the awakened
transcends this difference,
and the boundless wisdom
of the enlightened
sees love and hate for what they are:
manifestations of passion,
delusions rooted in desire.

the true mind knows all of this,
and thus so do I...
even so... but then...
and then again...
always do I return to thee,
smiling and laughing,
sharing the love that arises
from the innocence we create together.

Unmade State of Being (Meditation for Awakening Self Nature True Mind)

There Exists an Unconstructed, Unconditioned and Unchanging State!

At Savatthi the Blessed Buddha once said to his monks:

Bhikkhus, I will teach you the Unconstructed, Unconditioned & Uncreated State, and the very way leading to this unconstructed, unconditioned & uncreated state...

Listen and pay alert attention to that, which will lead you to lasting happiness!!!

And what, bhikkhus, is this unconstructed, unconditioned & uncreated state?

The elimination of Greed, the elimination of Hate, & the elimination of Ignorance:
This is called the unconstructed, unconditioned & uncreated state of Nibbana...

And what, bhikkhus, is the good way leading to this unconstructed, unconditioned and uncreated state of eternally pure bliss, open freedom and stilled peace?

Awareness of the body as a collection of organs is a way to this unconstructed...

The four foundations of awareness is a way to this unconstructed...

Serene, calm and profound insight is a way to this unconstructed...

Absorption into concentrated, directed thought and sustained examination is a way...

Absorption into emptiness, into signlessness, and into the uninclined is a way...

The four right efforts is a way to this unconstructed state...

The four roads to force is a way to this unconstructed state...

The five pure abilities is a way to this unconstructed state...

The five pure powers is a way to this unconstructed state...

The seven links to awakening is a way to this unconstructed state...

The Noble 8-fold Way

True Dharma, Buddha Nature, True Mind, Self Nature

For a person of unsteady mind,
Not knowing true Dhamma,
Serenity
Set adrift:
Discernment doesn't grow full.

For a person of unsoddened mind,
Unassaulted awareness,
Abandoning merit & evil,
Wakeful,
There is no danger
No fear.

-Dhammapada, 3, translation by Thanissaro Bhikku.

Commentary: this quote is from verses 38 and 39 in Chapter 3 of the Dhammapada.

Chapter 3 is entitled The Mind, and gives the disciple instructions about the mind.

The footnote for verse 39 reveals that a soddened mind is soaked by the rain of passion.

For, just as our clothes are soaked in the rain, so too is the mind by passion.

Of course, a light rainfall will barely soak me; but a rainstorm would drench me.

Likewise, a storm of passion would harm me greatly, disturbing my mind, leaving me distracted, lost, confused, motivated by fear and prone to anger.

Thus, passion itself is harmless in moderation. Too much of it or too little of it will lead to
psychic illness.

As well, "true Dharma" is subtly realized as Buddha Nature where the realm of truth, being that of phenomenon and noumenon, is also known as Dharmakaya.

When the disciple always views Self Nature as Buddha Nature, the True Mind is bathed in the realization of the true Dharma path, the Middle Way.

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Reference:

Footnote to Dhammapada Verse 39: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/khuddaka/dhp/tb0/index.html#n39